The Secrets to Successful Electric Vehicle (EV) Marketing

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The Secrets to Successful Electric Vehicle (EV) Marketing

Andrew Singer

Biography

I am a car enthusiast who has worked in the automotive industry in various roles for over ten years, both as a journalist for industry magazines and as a marketing manager at an automotive dealership. The automotive industry faces a state of flux and I am fascinated to see how it will continue to evolve in years to come– from various propulsion possibilities like electricity, hydrogen, or e-fuels, to self-driving technology, to the ways in which vehicles themselves are constructed. There is a tidal wave of change ahead. The industry employs nearly 500,000 Canadians– more than 117,200 people directly, with more than 370,000 in after sales and dealer networks. As one of Canada’s largest manufacturing sectors, it contributed more than $12.5 billion to GDP in 2020. I am fascinated to see how Canada embraces this change and accelerates the shift into emission-free driving, manufacturing, and power generation.

Research Summary

Nearly all automotive manufacturers market their EVs in a “traditional” sense– digital and print campaigns highlight favourable qualities of the vehicles such as its technology, range, all-electric capability, utility, performance and more. However, unlike most automotive manufacturers, Tesla does not advertise its vehicles online or print. Rather, initial text analysis shows Tesla vehicles were viewed more favourably by automotive journalists and media. This favourable press, also known as earned media, likely amounts to tens of millions of dollars of free advertising for the company. As this earned media persists over time, a favourable outlook of the company and its vehicles is created. Tesla may eschew traditional marketing, but the more other manufacturers market their own USPs (unique selling proposition) and offer superior features, the more the gap between Tesla sales and other EV manufacturers will close. Tesla owned 79% market share in 2020, yet predicts it will hold just 20% market share in 2025. The nature of the EV market and the dominant players within it may look very different in ten years’ time.

Tags

Automotive, Marketing, Technology

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